Friday, September 9, 2022

Public Works No Longer Carter Country

 Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba fired Deputy Public Works Director Mary Carter today.  Ms. Carter confirmed to WLBT she became involuntarily separated from the city of Jackson today.  

The firing comes as no surprise after she threw some serious shade on her boss, Public Works Director Marlin King, to the media a few weeks ago.  She possesses the precious Class A water operator license. 

JJ possesses an employee resignation letter from July.  The employee states she quit because of Ms. Carter's bullying behavior.  

43 comments:

Anonymous said...

Under current Jackson policies she can veto her firing, right?

Anonymous said...

Council unanimously scuttles the Emperor's other-than-infrastructure ARPA spending dreams. Effectively a vote of no confidence.

Anonymous said...

Lumumba fired a whistleblower? Oh oh.

Anonymous said...

#ResignLumumba

Anonymous said...

Waiting for her to go scorched earth on social media. It’s in her nature.

Anonymous said...

With all the free nationwide publicity City of Jackson and the water plants have been getting there should be plenty of well qualified applicants with Class A licenses.


Right?


Anonymous said...

Ask Guinness Book what is the longest running free circus?

Anonymous said...

Hopefully she has some more dirt on the Lord Mayor's operation to share.

Anonymous said...

If she was a real Class A operator how did the water plant get into the shape it is? Do they give them out on the back of a box of cereal?

Anonymous said...

That is just one more worthless person on the Jackson payroll that has been eliminated.

Anonymous said...

So, more than a couple people showed up at St. Dominic Hospital today. After testing was done, a baby’s bottles were confirmed to have parasites and it linked to guess what? Jackson water.

It has also affected at least 6 adults.

Anonymous said...

Third world tier leadership leads to third world problems.

Anonymous said...

PROOF 8:29

Anonymous said...

Attn 8 29. Why in the world would a responsible parent in the great city of Jackson, feed a bottle of water to an innocent child? Maybe looking for some financial compensation at a future law s uit

Anonymous said...

Is this the person who emailed the public works director something to the effect "you don't understand the level of problems"

Anonymous said...

I imagine that the lawyers preparing a class action lawsuit against the COJ. Morgan & Morgan, for the people

Mrs. Eastover said...


So let me get this straight.... He fired the lady that was begging for help for the city and was ignored by the mayor and his underlings.. She warned of the danger and has emails to verify It all? Ms. Carter? I look at her as a hero in all of this.

Is it not bad form to fire a wistleblower?

Does our mayor not have an attorney to advise him on such things.

This seems to be a stupid mistake made by one seething with anger.



Anonymous said...

Attn 9 17. I thought the esteemed mayor was a lawyer? Well anyway, I need some advise on finding a good real estate agent to help me unload my house in northeast Jackson.

Anonymous said...

I live in a nice house in northeast Jackson. Do I have any liability in this bonehead decision?

Anonymous said...

Following up of 9:17, isn’t she one of only two Class A operators on the city’s payroll, with at least one required to be on duty at all times at the plant, 24/7?

Anonymous said...

Looks like someone on the Jackson is going to be working a little overtime.

Anonymous said...

What did she say that led to her firing?

Anonymous said...

I don't remember Carter sending emails to the Mayor. I thought she only emailed her boss, Marlin.

Anonymous said...

From WAPT August 18:

Even with the overtime, a 3 On Your Side analysis of timesheets sent to the EPA -- plotted like events on a calendar -- show that in June, there were approximately 153 hours where no Class A operator was on duty at Curtis.

King said gaps in coverage were likely filled by Carter, who is not required to clock in. “So, yeah, that’s not a situation where you can just look at timesheets, because again, she does not have to clock in.”

We asked if the EPA would get the impression that the plant was not staffed during those hours. King said that is something that could be easily explained if the city was questioned.

Carter, who told King just weeks earlier that she was worn down, said she likely did not work all those hours. “Maybe not all of those times,” she said.

King later backtracked on claims a Class A worker was on duty at those times. “I would like to think so. But going back to that time, I can’t speak to it. I know at that time, our focus was, ‘we were under a boil water notice. We were trying to get it lifted,’” he said. “I just can’t speak to what was happening there other than day-to-day. It was ‘what do we need to do so we can get that boil water notice lifted?’”

Kingfish said...

WAPT?

Don Drane said...

Wrongful Termination is about all she can charge and recover. And recovery is probably limited to her being eligible for Unemployment Compensation...a piddling recovery at best.

While firing (or other forms of retaliation against) a 'whistle blower' is illegal in many states, it's doubtful Mississippi law even addresses it, unless (federal) Sarbanes-Oxley is at play, which is doubtful.

And it's not even clear that she met or meets the definition of 'whistle blower'. It's not clear what she reported or to whom or, especially, whether she reported ILLEGAL activity. Maybe Carlos can help straighten it out for her.

If she were in California or Florida she would probably prevail in challenging the termination. Or if she can visit a shrink and establish a case of mental-anguish caused by termination, she'll have a nice lawsuit.

Example: https://www.mccaberabin.com/whistleblower-faq/can-a-whistleblower-be-fired/

Anonymous said...

Does this firing mean that the MSDH daily memo will have to be amended to reflect that there is now 1 city of jackson employee left “working” at OBC?

Anonymous said...

NOW WE’RE TALKING. “A team from the Environmental Protection Agency’s OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL arrived in Jackson last week to begin a “multidisciplinary” top-to-bottom review of the current drinking water crisis, an agency spokesperson told NBC News.” Bring it on.

Anonymous said...

I've read many times that the water operators and other roles must have residence in Jackson? Is that true and still being enforced? If so, that is the dumbest most egotistical shortsighted policy on the books. It's probably just another excuse from the chisel haired gumflapper.

Anonymous said...

What did email to King? “I’m afraid you may not understand the severity of the problem.” He didn’t. She gets fired for expressing that concern. He would be DPW today if she hadn’t expressed it. I’m not sure, but it seems like WLBT got hold of this email around the same time it did the sarcastic “whatever floats your boat” email from Dr. omari to Virgi.

Antar needs to be taken down. Inspector Generals don’t launch investigations for the fun of it.

Krusatyr said...

To know Lil Choke's mind, just revert to your own at 14 to 17 years old, the stories you told to avoid deserved consequences.

Right now he is plotting to find allies among the EPA and other feds, who drink from the same race baiting cup to revise history.

That Bennie T reads him like a headline is fascinating among all the puzzle pieces shifting in the mayor's shifty, adolescent mind.

Anonymous said...

"Attn 8 29. Why in the world would a responsible parent in the great city of Jackson, feed a bottle of water to an innocent child?"

There is nothing on this blog that anyone gave a "bottle of water" to an infant or child. Pure water is bad for an infant, as their kidneys are not fully functioning and cannot maintain the necessary osmolality to produce normal urine.

What may have happened is someone reconstituted powdered baby formula with Jackson tap water. The news reports the past few days parrot the claims that the water situation is greatly improved, and some people seem to think the water is safe to drink now. THAT could have made a child sick and led to testing.

As an aside - you can stick your "great city of Jackson" where the sun don't shine.

Anonymous said...

“Anonymous Anonymous said... 0900
I've read many times that the water operators and other roles must have residence in Jackson? Is that true and still being enforced? If so, that is the dumbest most egotistical shortsighted policy on the books. “

Unless given a waiver by Msdh living within 50 mile radius is required . Unknown COJ requirement.

Anonymous said...

It’s amazing how this mayor seeks to protect the most incompetent employees time and again and punish those who actually tried to do something right. In this scenario, it is the now Deputy DPW who should fired. It makes you wonder what dirt Mr. King has on Mr. Mayor…

Anonymous said...

There is a whistleblower type protection in Mississippi. I hope she gets a good lawyer.

[T]here should be in at least two circumstances, a narrow public policy exception to the employment at will doctrine and this should be so whether there is a written contract or not: (1) an employee who refuses to participate in an illegal act ... shall not be barred by the common law rule of employment at will from bringing an action in tort for damages against his employer; (2) an employee who is discharged for reporting illegal acts of his employer to the employer or anyone else is not barred by the employment at will doctrine from bringing action in tort for damages against his employer. To this limited extent this Court declares these public policy exceptions *197 to the age old common law rule of employment at will.

Walker v. DaVita Health Care Partners, Inc., 229 So. 3d 195, 196–97 (Miss. Ct. App. 2017)

Anonymous said...

If the Mayor says the water plant problems have been an ongoing problem from past Administrations then why fire this lady? If this is not the issue then he needs to step down. Because she is on his present Administration!

People get hurt fucking with peoples livelihood over this type bullshit! I mean politics!

Anonymous said...

I'm here from the EPA to kick ass and chew bubble gum, and I'm all out of kickass.

EPA won't be troubling Labumbla.

Anonymous said...

Antar can cast around for allies to his heart’s content. The OIG doesn’t give a rat’s ass.

Anonymous said...

10:08 incompetence is Antar’s wheelhouse; competence poses a threat.

Anonymous said...

When the boss said the deputy worked an extra 40 undocumented hours per week for month, she was supposed to step up and say “yes I did.”

That, in my opinion, is why she was fired, just like numerous police chiefs, etc. Lumumba makes clear that all must toe his line, without coming out and saying it. He fires people who don’t, and the rest understand what’s expected of them.

Kingfish said...

Haven't see me criticize the firing, have you? Read that letter I posted yesterday and read between the lines.

Anonymous said...

KF, I read the letter and it appears I stand corrected on that one. Thanks, 5:11

Mrs. Eastover said...

@ kingfish. Oh gosh.. what am I missing here??


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